“The Spectacular Now” and the First Loves That Gutted Us

At 16, when I told my mother I was in love with my first boyfriend, she scoffed at me. Her pitying look did nothing but enrage me and propelled me to distance myself further from her, burying myself headfirst into my teen angst. I know now that my mother’s reaction came from the outcome of her own teenage love affairs and her desire for me to focus on my dreams and aspirations instead of some boy. The inner lives of teenagers have always been of interest in our society, but teenage love affairs are often genuinely heartbreaking to the adolescents inside them.

As a smack-dab-in-the-middle millennial, I gravitated toward teen romance flicks like Clueless, She’s All That, and Crazy/Beautiful. I admired Cher’s (Alicia Silverstone) chic wardrobe and was enthralled with the chaos of Nicole’s (Kirsten Dunst) mental anguish. But none of that felt familiar or even real to me. These glamorous California teens were a world away from the South Side of Chicago. There were a few films like A Walk to Remember and Save the Last Dance that felt more tangible to my experiences. Like Mandy Moore’s character in the 2002 Adam Shakman film, my mother began battling cancer when I was 18, succumbing to the disease when I was 20. 

Continue reading at Sundance.org

'A Jazzman's Blues' Trailer: Tyler Perry Brings Netflix His Years-Spanning Tale Of Forbidden Love

Netflix has dropped the trailer for A Jazzman’s Blues, the upcoming film from Tyler Perry.

Here’s the official synopsis:

A sweeping tale of forbidden love, A JAZZMAN’S BLUES unspools forty years of secrets and lies soundtracked by juke joint blues in the deep South. Written, directed and produced by Perry, the film stars Joshua Boone and Solea Pfeiffer as star-crossed lovers Bayou and Leanne. 

Continue reading at Shadow and Act.

'Blood From Stone' Is A Vampire Flick About the Human Condition

There has been no shortage of vampire flicks in Hollywood. Stemming from 1931's Dracula to the teen saga, Twilight, which first debuted in 2008, there has been a collective obsession with the blood-sucking undead. There have also been many varied portrayals of vampires. From the grotesque vampires in Buffy the Vampire Slayer to the hunky and brooding Salvatore brothers in The Vampire Diaries, writers and directors have taken liberties when showcasing these mystic beings on the big and small screens. 

Set in Las Vegas, director Geoff Ryan's Blood From Stone is one of the more intriguing vampire films seen lately. Told through a muted lens, the film follows Jure (Vanja Kapetanovic), an ancient vampire who goes by the name of Joe in the present day. While the world has pressed forward, Jure has not. He is still nostalgic for the days where he didn't have to hide in plain sight. He's unable to exist in the present day. Instead, he allows his blood lust to spiral out of control. His impulses often lead to him draining patrons at various bars, even though he's supposed to be blending in. 

Along with his obsession with blood and alcohol, Jure is dangerously fixated on his ex-girlfriend, a vampire named Darya (Gabriella Toth), who goes by Nico's name. Though she's desperately lonely, Nico is content to live out her nights as a bartender, leaning into her humanity and flying under the radar. However, as he has in the past, Jure's presence in her life threatens to throw everything she's so carefully balancing into chaos.

It's hard to do anything "new" with the vampire genre, and though Ryan is working with a limited budget, he succeeds with several fresh perspectives. In past films, we've seen vampires who are immune to alcohol. However, Jure has discovered how blissful obliteration can be when he makes sure his victims are drunk before draining them dry. 

Moreover, Darya doesn't apologize for longing for a normal life. Instead, Ryan highlights how Jure's constant interference in her life — from the beginning when he made her his vampire bride- has caused her a great deal of agony through the centuries. Blood From Stone is a film about the undead. Yet, the issues that Jure and Darya face together, especially as he pushes her toward her baser instincts, have never been more human. 

In addition to being well-acted, the film works because it doesn't try to stretch above its limits. Neither Jure nor Nico sparkle or shine and there aren't any odd or misplaced special effects that would undoubtedly pull the viewer out of the story. There are fangs and blood, but there is nothing comical about them. 

Though Blood From Stone did feel a bit lengthy at times, and it left the viewer with more questions than it answered, it's a mostly successful and engaging film, full of humor, blood, and wit about the urges and desires that we've all experienced at one point or another. The movie is about the human condition, but the main characters simply happen to be vampires. 

Blood From Stone is available on Amazon Prime, Blu-ray, and more

'No Church In the Wild' ALL EPISODES OUT NOW

On this Freedom Day, I am so proud to present No Church In the Wild, Leslie Wagner-Wilson’s harrowing story of faith and survival. The mini-series chronicles her time in The Peoples Temple through her escape from Jonestown, Guyana. It’s a story that has weighed heavy on my spirit since director Richmond Obeng introduced me to it many months ago.

I am so happy he brought me on along with Lindsey Addawoo to produce. This is just the beginning of our journey. ✊🏿✊🏾✊🏽 ALL EPISODES OUT NOW via YouTube.

“It is easier to forget than to remember.” Leslie Wagner-Wilson 🤎🖤

Adrienne Warren Is Absolutely Astonishing In 'Tina: The Tina Turner Musical'

Many of us grew up listening to Tina Turner's soulful vocals, and learned about her personal life from her revealing memoir, I, Tina, and the 1993 biopic What's Love Got To Do With It? As much as Angela Bassett embodied the queen of rock n roll, the spirit of Tina Turner also lives within powerhouse talent, Adrienne Warren. Her performance in Tina: The Tina Turner Musical is electrifying. (Nkeki Obi-Melekwe steps into Turner's dancing shoes during matinees.)

Like the film's iconic opening scene, the play begins with a young Anna Mae Bullock singing in a Nutbush, Tennessee church during the 1940s. Matching her elder counterpart's out of this world vocals, actress Skye Dakota Turner blew the top off the theater with a gospel rendition of "Nutbush City Limits." From that moment, it was clear that Tina is something special.

Helmed by director Phyllida Lloyd and written by The Mountaintop playwright Katori Hall with Frank Ketelaar and Kees Prins, Tina follows the traditional beats of a musical biopic. A teenage Turner, at the urging of her ailing Gran Georgeanna (Myra Lucretia Taylor), leaves behind her southern hometown for St. Louis. Turner moves to the city with her stern and emotionally withholding mother, Zelma (A Different World alum Dawnn Lewis), and sister Alline (Mars Rucker). There is, of course, a significant focus on the icon's relationship and marriage with the volatile Ike Turner (Daniel J. Watts), and their work as The Ike and Tina Turner Revue. However, Lloyd and the writers' handling of the Ike and Tina years, as well as Warren's passionate and tireless performance, elevates Tina to one of the most exquisite performances on Broadway.

Continue reading at Shadow and Act.

Chatting On WNYC's 'The Takeaway' About Disney + and What’s to Be Done With 'Song Of the South'

Next month, Disney is set to launch its new streaming service, Disney Plus, giving audiences access to an extensive range of the studio’s films, from classics like "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" to less well-known releases like 1995’s "Operation Dumbo Drop." 

But one controversial title will remain locked away in the Disney Vault: 1946’s "Song of the South." Set on a plantation in the late 19th century, the film was boycotted by the NAACP at the time of its release for selling a whitewashed version of slavery.

While "Song of the South" has been unavailable to the public for decades, Disney has continued profiting off of the property: including the song "Zip a Dee Doo Dah" on music compilations and using the film as the basis for the Splash Mountain ride at Disneyland.

Joining The Takeaway to discuss "Song of the South" is Aramide Tinubu, an entertainment editor for Stylecaster.com and freelance film critic. 

Click on the 'Listen' button above to hear this segment. Don't have time to listen right now? Subscribe for free to our podcast via iTunes, TuneIn, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts to take this segment with you on the go.

LISTEN HERE.

Image: Aramide Tinubu

Baddie Winkle Is Committed To Living Her Best Life: EXCLUSIVE

While most of us have to remember not to take ourselves so seriously, some people are born with a euphoric energy that they never lose. Our favorite grandma influencer Baddie Winkle teamed up with Jack in the Box for Jack’s Playground–a whimsical adult-sized playground that boasted everything from curly fry swings, a massive (and super-fast) bacon slide, and a couple of taco see-saws. In the midst of Las Vegas’ Life Is Beautiful–an immersive music, arts, comedy and food festival, Jack’s Playground was the perfect place to get into the swing of the day (literally). It also proved to be the ideal location to let our hair down after a long day of listening to acts like Bea Miller, Cautious Clay and Pink Sweat$.

Hanging with Baddie was certainly one of the highlights of the three-day affair. Adrienne Ingoldt–Jack in the Box’s VP of Marketing and Communications revealed that the 91-year old influencer was their only choice to host Jack’s Playground. “We are very choosy about where we choose to activate,” she explained. “We want to keep company that shares our mindset about being an individual, expressing yourself, going against the grain. And, as we say, be the curly fry in a sea of regular fries, and this is definitely the festival for that. Baddie’s awesome. She marches to the beat of her own drum, and the energy she brings, the individuality she brings absolutely reflects the spirit of Jack in the Box and the people who work there–the food we make. We do everything a little bit different.”

When she wasn’t zooming around in her plush rainbow shooter, crushing Jack’s Playground visitors in games of fiery skeeball, and spending time with fans–STYLECASTER sat down to chat with Baddie on a plush red lip couch with swirls of whipped cream complete with cherries on top as a backdrop. We chatted about Life Is Beautiful, her partnership with Jack Ii the Box, the fashion that speaks to her soul and why this the best time to be a woman.

Continue reading at STYLECASTER.

Image: Instagram.

‘Triple Threat’ Doesn’t Even Begin To Define Gabrielle Dennis: EXCLUSIVE

When you’re a multi-hyphenate talent, who can do it all, being defined is the least of your concerns. A Black Lady Sketch Show’s Gabrielle Dennis is used to taking on every opportunity that she encounters with guts and gusto. With roles in everything from HBO’s Insecure and Netflix’s Luke Cage to her portrayal of Whitney Houston in The Bobby Brown Story–Dennis is a chameleon when it comes to sinking into her characters and their stories.

Though she spent the last few years on the Fox dramedy Rosewood opposite Morris Chestnut–her starring role in the groundbreaking A Black Lady Sketch Show just propelled her career to a whole other level.

Conceived, produced and written by Robin Thede and produced by Issa Rae-the series is the very first sketch comedy series written, produced, and starring Black women.

For Dennis, who began her career on the sketch stage, but has done a great deal more drama work since–it was like coming home. Just days before, A Black Lady Sketch Show was renewed for Season 2–STYLECASTER sat down to chat with Dennis about her expansive career–why she’s in no rush to define herself, and why her experience on ABLSS has been a dream.

Continue reading at STYLECASTER.

Image: James Anthony.

Gigi Hadid On Her Favorite Summer Perfume & What TSA Confiscated From Her Bag: EXCLUSIVE

ummer might come in the middle of the year, but it’s often a time for change, new opportunity and adventure. Summer days are often full of travel and exploration. Accordingly, Michael Kors’ new campaign for Wonderlust, is intended to commemorate your epic summer memories–and let you revisit them every time you spritz. Supermodel and (resident Queen of Summer) Gigi Hadid is the face of Michael Kors Wonderlust–a refreshing fragrance that will transport you to the crystal blue waters of Turks and Caicos.

Emboldened with an adventurous spirit and a lust for life, Kors knew that Hadid was the perfect fit for his new campaign. “Gigi fully embodies the Michael Kors Wonderlust spirit” he explained. “She’s curious, spontaneous, lighthearted…everything you want in a travel partner and is the perfect face for this fragrance.” For Hadid–the scent smells like an endless summer (which is what I would imagine her life actually feels like). “Michael Kors Wonderlust is a vacation in a bottle,” she said. “The fragrance is an escape–a little luxury that takes you away. I love the floral notes and the versatility. It carries me from a day at the beach to a night out with friends.”

Just after the prolific designer unveiled Hadid as the new face of Micheal Kors Wonderlust($118; macys.com), I had to opportunity to speak with them both. On a 90 degree blazing hot day in New York City, we chatted about jet setting, how certain scents are ingrained into our memories, and the fact Hadid is not exempt from TSA.

Continue reading at STYLECASTER.

Boots Riley And The Cast Of 'Sorry To Bother You' On The Bold, Whimsical Film (Sundance Interview)

There are plenty of films with commentary surrounding race, commodification, self-worth, and what it means to be normal. However, none of those films have been as strange, compelling and masterful as Boots Riley’s debut feature film; Sorry to Bother You. As Riley said bluntly in an interview with the Los Angeles Times, "I'm not good at sounding like somebody else or doing what someone else does." Starring the incredible Lakeith Stanfield as Cassius Green, the film follows a young Black man trying to find his purpose in life in an alternative version of Oakland. Living in his uncle’s (Terry Crews) garage, Cass finds solace in the arms of his artist, sign-twirling girlfriend Detroit (Tessa Thompson) who chooses activism over affluence.Desperate for more in life, Cass finds a job at telemarketing company where after receiving some advice from an older co-worker (Danny Glover) he quickly rises up the ranks. However, what he isn’t prepared for is what he’ll have to sell or how he'll have to sell out to stay at the top. Steven Yuen, Omari Hardwick, Armie Hammer and Jermaine Fowler also star.

At the MACRO Lounge presented by Shea Moisture at Sundance Film Festival, Riley, Thompson, Yeun and Crews lounged on a plush couch and discussed bringing this magical and shocking film to life. For Riley, who is a musician, activist, and poet, the idea for Sorry to Bother You was born out of the desire to break all the rules. “I read all the hack books like, How to Write a Script in 30 Days and What Not to Do When Writing Your Script," he recalled. “I read those purposely to figure out what rules I could play with. And, as I wrote those first few pages, I realized that that's not the way that I create normally. "

More than just creating a story on his own terms, Riley wasn’t interested in being confined to a certain genre. “A lot of times when people decide, even in music or film, that this thing I'm making is this genre, we edit along the lines of what we're told is the genre," Riley explained. “We leave out a lot of real things, a lot of real joys and pains and awkwardness and other ideas and we stick to this pretty formulated thing. If we're gonna truly make something that comes from artists that aren't usually able to get a voice, those artists have also had other experiences.”

Continue reading at Shadow and Act.

JET: Be In the Now | Jhené's Journey [Exclusive Interview]

Aruba Film Fest: A Morning Spent With Dutch-Aruban Filmmaker Shamira Raphaëla - Her Debut Film, Cycles and Unconditional Love

Shamira Raphaëla is a half-Aruban, half-Dutch television director living in Amsterdam. From the outside, her world seems structured and ordered. She spends her days traveling the world and telling stories from behind her camera lens. However Raphaëla’s 60-year old father, Pempy, and older brother, Andy, live almost parallel lives. Pempy has been addicted to heroine and crack for more than thirty years, and is constantly in and out of jail. Andy has seemingly followed in his footsteps. One would assume that Raphaëla’s story would be one of destruction and pain. And yet, her debut film “Deal With It” about her father and brother, shows something radically different. It is a film about strength, acceptance, and unconditional love. Raphaëla screened “Deal With It” at this year's Aruba International Film Festival. She even took time out of her hectic schedule to show me around the island. We stopped at a snack hut for a traditional Aruban breakfast of pastechis; a pastry similar to a empanada or a turnover that’s filled with meat and cheese. From there, saw a group of donkeys, stopped to see the Balashi Gold Mill Ruins, and we ended our morning by hitting up the sunning Baby Beach in San Nicolas for a swim.

We chatted about “Deal With It”, destructive cycles, and telling our stories.

Aramide Tinubu: To start off, I just wanted to commend you on your film. I’ve never seen a film dealing with theses same themes that has had the amount of warmth and love throughout the story. It was wonderful.

Shamira Raphaela: Oh thank you. It was so important to me for people to see the love. I wanted people to see the good, and not just be focused on the bad.

AT: Oh, yes that’s incredibly important. So, what inspired you to become a filmmaker? Was there a particular moment in your childhood that sparked your interest in storytelling?

SR: I guess I was always drawn to injustice, so I always wanted to like change the world. So I was like, I can either become a doctor, or I can become a storyteller and the storyteller is what I ended up going with. I’ve always been interested in people and in their perspectives. I think it’s important to tell stories to each other, because it is the only way we can better ourselves.

AT: Yes, I think that so often what ails many disenfranchised and minorities communities across the globe is the fact we don’t talk about things, and we don’t tell our stories. It becomes a cycle, and we continue these same patterns over and over again.

SR: Right, and we all have the same story, that’s the strange thing about it. Now that I’ve screened “Deal With it” all over the world, it’s like oh my God, this is the same situation that someone in Havana, Cuba is dealing with.

AT: That’s why film and mediums like it are so important, because you can touch so many people.

SR: Yes. (Laughing) But sometimes I think that if I was a doctor, I could have saved so many more people.

AT: (Laughing) Yes, but you would probably still be in school.

SR: And in debt.

AT: (Laughing) Well to move on to you father Pempy, one of the main things that stood out to me in the film, was the Tupac poster your father has hanging on his wall. What did his admiration of Tupac symbolize for you?

SR: Tupac, is his hero. He’s got Che Guevara, Scarface, and Bob Marley of course, these are all men who were rebels and anarchist against the system, and my dad identities with them because he is also against the system. He just wants to live his life unbothered and never surrender. So for him, these are really like his role models. I chose to put them in the film because it gives the audience context to see where he’s coming from. But at the same, time Tupac is critical of my dad sometimes. I got that shot of Tupac looking over at my dad like, “What are you doing?” (Laughing)

Continue reading at Shadow and Act.

When Betty Met Sally: On 'Mad Men's Finale

It's always so striking to me how things in life come full circle, how we inevitably return to the point at which we started. Many things may have happened in between the start and the finish, and yet the universe has a funny way of making sure we remember where we began. I started watching Mad Men my freshman year of college. I have always been a television fiend and the fact that Men was a historical series really drew me in. I'm aging myself a tad, but this was before Netflix got really big so, I ventured out to my local FYE and purchased the first two seasons of the show on DVD. By the time I'd returned home for the summer, DVDs in tow I was obsessed, and like I'd done with The Wire, One Tree Hill and Dawson's Creek before, I got my mother hooked as well. We'd lay for hours in her bed watching episode after episode. I was weary from my first adventures in NYC and she was exhausted from her endless doctors appointments that often included chemotherapy and radiation. So we laid there together, transported from 21st century Chicago to 1960's New York. Our troubles were real and would soon become even more daunting. But in those endless hours, on those warm summer evenings we could forget. Don Draper's world was slowly unraveling and the people closes to him; both family ans colleagues were getting swept away in the fall-out. We were captivated by the characters who lived and loved during that pivotal moment in our country’s history. Through them, we saw the assassinations of our nations leaders. We experienced the first moon landing, the Civil Rights Movement, and the beginning of the Women’s movement. I grew up in a home with only two television and no cable for a majority of my life. Though I'd watch season three on-line and at school, I purchased the third season and brought it home dreaming of another summer snuggled with my mama. But this was not to be. She never finished season three of Mad Men and she never saw any of the seasons that came after. But, I've stayed the course. Nearly five years later, I've seen all 92-episodes of the series.

[embed]https://youtu.be/3JUqwwjgLAY[/embed]

In the second to last episode of the final season, it's revealed that Don's ex-wife Betty Francis is dying of terminal lung cancer. Not yet 40-years old, she has three children and seems at last settled in her life. After leaving Don because of his lies, controlling nature and constant philandering, Betty seems to have figured out who she is.  Her husband Henry adores her, she and Don have called a truce, and she's gone back to school to get her Masters degree. Betty hasn't been the most sympathetic woman, but she's was a true and whole character; flawed and desperately seeking happiness.

After collapsing on the hall steps at her school, Betty finds out that she's dying. Though her husband and teenage daughter Sally beg her to seek treatment, she seems content in facing the end of her life. She wants to forgo treatment, proceeding as normal while doing the things that make her happy. She explains to her daughter,

Sally, I've learned to believe people when they tell you it's over. They don't want to say it so it's usually the truth.

With Henry crippled with denial and Don off wherever he was, Betty placed a great deal of trust and responsibility on 16-year old Sally. In a conversation that was eerily similar to one I had with my own father in January of 2010, it was Sally who tells Don about Betty's grim prognosis.  It is Sally who cancels her trip to Madrid, it's Sally who comes back and forth from school to try and normalize things for her little brothers and comfort her mother. Throughout the entire series we've watch Sally and Betty butt heads, challenging one another as the traditions of the 1950's gave way to the baby boomers; the free spirits and new thinkers of Sally's generation.  In a letter to Sally that includes her final instructions Betty writes,

Sally I always worried about you because you marched to the beat of your own drum. But now I know that's good because your life will be an adventure. I love you, mom.

As I wiped the tears from my cheeks, I thought how strange that Betty and Sally find themselves in the end, at the very place where I began.

xoxoxo Chocolate Girl in the City xoxoxo